In search of home

A little boy’s adorable bear cub is the perfect pet—until he begins to grow . . . and grow . . . and grow! Soon this huge bear with his “bearish” ways is just too big to continue living in a human house. But what would be a better home for him?

Whimsy from A to Z

It’s one thing to learn your ABCs. It’s quite another when Oliver Jeffers is in charge. His new picture book, Once Upon an Alphabet, contains 26 very short stories, beginning with “An Astronaut” and ending with “Zeppelin.” Preschoolers and beginning readers will delight in these vignettes featuring everything from a lumberjack who repeatedly gets struck by lightning to, of all things, a puzzled parsnip.

Learning to be exactly who you are

Lisa Graff has written several books for middle grade readers, including the National Book Award nominee A Tangle of Knots. Graff has an uncanny ability to give a simple story an intensity that makes you want to keep turning the pages. In her latest offering, Absolutely Almost, 11-year-old Albie is struggling with the idea that he should be “better” than he is: better at math, better at spelling, better at being cool. We asked Graff a few questions about Albie, about writing, and about fitting in.

When at first you don't succeed . . .

It is true that Lisa Graff’s latest book, Absolutely Almost, brings to mind someone else’s work, but not because Graff is in any way imitative—she’s far too brilliant to sound like someone else. Lately the patrons of my school library have been asking, “Do you have any books like Wonder by R.J. Palacio?” and now I have the perfect offering. Like Wonder, Absolutely Almost is the story of a boy struggling to fit in. Unlike Auggie, however, Graff’s protagonist Albie doesn’t have any noticeable problems; he just cannot succeed at school.

Inspired by a prima ballerina

Kristy Dempsey revisits a watershed moment in performing arts history in her sparkling new book, A Dance Like Starlight. The story’s spirited young heroine, an African-American girl who dreams of becoming a ballet dancer, lives with her mother in Harlem. The year is 1951.

Feature by Robin Smith

Whether it’s a baby shower or a sip-and-see (for you non-Southerners out there, it’s a gathering where an infant is adored), there is nothing I love more than holding a baby. In lieu of a real baby, I have to settle for books about babies. Lucky for me, there are some adorable new ones to add to my collection. Melissa Guion’s newest offering, Baby Penguins Love Their Mama!, is...

Feature by Alice Cary

Light the fire, grab a mug of hot cocoa and cozy up with the kids for some holiday reading. You’re sure to find magic in a fine Christmas picture book—the best of which will earn a place in your heart and become a treasured part of your family traditions.That special magic is brilliantly captured in The Christmas Wish, a family project that involved photographer Per Breiehagen, his...

The special bond between best buds

Fans of Eric Carle won’t want to miss his latest offering, a tribute to friendship based on one of the author’s own childhood experiences.As the book opens, we see two friends playing together happily. By the next spread, however, the boy is sad. His friend has moved away. He takes a deep breath, counts to 10 and heads out to find her. He swims a wide, cold river under a starry sky....

A new Atlantis mythology

Promi is a good thief, maybe one of the best. Armed with only a knife (which he usually steals), he squeaks by, stealing pies, cakes and other sweets to survive. But then he makes a big mistake. In Atlantis Rising, the new book by best-selling author T.A. Barron, Promi makes an enemy of Deputy High Priest Grukkar, and then steals a smackberry pie right out from under the Divine Monk. While...

Oliver Jeffers' angry crayons

Little artists everywhere might get a shock from the picture book The Day the Crayons Quit: Crayons have feelings, too, and they’ve got a bone to pick with Duncan, the little boy who finds a stack of angry letters from the unhappy occupants of his coloring box. Red, Blue and Gray Crayons are exhausted. Pink Crayon takes umbrage with being...